Lowe vows to take folic acid fight to Parliament as petition passes 100,000

Rupert Lowe has said he will challenge the mandatory addition of folic acid to flour in Parliament. It comes after a petition calling for the policy to be scrapped passed 100,000 signatures.

The petition, "End the mandatory fortification of white flour with folic acid immediately", was started by Dr Clare Craig. It crossed the 100,000 mark on Thursday 8 October and had 109,225 signatures as of about 20:15 BST on Saturday 10 October. It stays open until 8 December 2026.

Passing 100,000 signatures means Parliament's Petitions Committee will consider the petition for a debate. A debate is not guaranteed and could not by itself overturn the policy.

At 19:21 BST on Thursday, Mr Lowe wrote: "The official petition to end the mandatory fortification of white flour with folic acid has just hit 100k. Great news. It helps me take the fight to the establishment in Parliament. Let's end it."

On Saturday morning at 07:55 he added: "I do not believe that the Government should be adding folic acid to our bread." He continued: "I will make that argument in Parliament following the successful petition. Leave the sodding bread alone." He summed up his position as: "Clear labelling. Informed choice. Targeted healthcare."

Under government guidance on GOV.UK, non-wholemeal wheat flour milled in or imported into the UK must contain 0.25mg of folic acid per 100g from 13 December 2026. Wholemeal flour and flour from small mills are exempt.

The government says the measure will prevent around 200 cases of neural tube defects, such as spina bifida, each year, about a fifth of UK cases. The Department of Health and Social Care repeated that estimate in its June 2026 response to the petition. It described fortification as "an evidenced public health measure, not a medical intervention" and said people can avoid fortified flour by choosing wholemeal, gluten-free or other flours. Added folic acid must be shown in ingredients lists.

The petition argues that "folic acid is a medicine not a food" and that it is "unethical to mass medicate the entire population without their knowledge or consent".

Image: Clark Young (Unsplash), CC0, via Wikimedia Commons